A COMMUNIST PROPAGANDA TOWARDS AMERICAN BLACK SOCIETY THROUGH RICHARD WRIGHT’S NATIVE SON
Skripsi
Disusun dalam Rangka Menyelesaikan Studi Strata 1 untuk memperoleh Gelar Sarjana Pendidikan
Oleh
Nama : Erik Harninta Putra NIM : 2250402039
Program Studi : S1
Jurusan : Sastra Inggris
FAKULTAS BAHASA DAN SASTRA UNIVERSITAS NEGERI SEMARANG
APPROVAL
The final project was approved by the Board of Examiners of the English Department of the Faculty of Languages and Arts of Semarang State University on………
Board of Examiners
1. Chairman,
Drs. Triyanto, M. A. NIP. 131281218
2. Secretary,
Dra. Dwi Anggani L. B, M.Pd.
NIP. 131813665
3. First Examiner,
Dra. Indrawati, M. Hum.
NIP. 131568990
4. Second Examiner as Second Adviser,
Hendrikus Joko Yulianto, S. S, M. Hum.
NIP. 132233485
5. Third Examiner as First Adviser,
Dra. Rahayu Puji H., M. Hum.
NIP. 132158715
Approved by
Dean of the Faculty of Languages and Arts,
PERNYATAAN
Dengan ini saya:
Nama : Erik Harninta Putra
NIM : 2250402039
Prodi/Jurusan : Sastra Inggris , Jurusan Bahasa dan Sastra Inggris FBS
UNNES
menyatakan dengan sesungguhnya bahwa final project yang berjudul:
A COMMUNIST PROPAGANDA TOWARDS AMERICAN BLACK SOCIETY THROUGH RICHARD WRIGHT’S NATIVE SON
yang saya tulis dalam rangka memenuhi salah satu syarat memperoleh gelar
sarjana ini benar-benar merupakan karya saya sendiri yang saya hasilkan setelah
melalui penelitian, pembimbingan, diskusi, dan pemaparan/ujian. Semua kutipan,
baik yang langsung maupun tidak langsung, baik yang diperoleh dari sumber
keperpustakaan, maupun sumber lainnya, telah disertai keterangan mengenai
identitas sumbernya dengan cara sebagaimana yang lazim dalam penulisan karya
ilmiah. Dengan demikian, walaupun tim penguji dan pembimbing penulisan final
project ini membubuhkan tandatangan sebagaimana keabsahannya, seluruh karya ilmiah ini tetap menjadi tanggung jawab saya sendiri. Jika kemudian hari
diketemukan ketidakberesan, saya bersedia menerima akibatnya.
Demikian, harap pernyataan ini dipergunakan sebagaimana semestinya.
Semarang, 8 Oktober 2006
Yang membuat pernyataan,
MOTTO AND DEDICATION
O ye who believe! Seek help with patient perseverance and
prayer; for God is with those who patiently persevere
(Al-Baqoro: 153).
This final project is dedicated to:
⊇
my mom, dad, brothers, and sisters,
⊇
my best friends ”the three M”, and
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
First and foremost, the writer would like to express my deepest gratitude to Allah
SWT, God the Almighty for the blessing and ease given to him in completing this
final project.
His deepest gratitude goes as well to Dra. Rahayu Puji. H., M. Hum, his
first advisor, Hendrikus Joko Yulianto, S.S, M. Hum., his second advisor, and
Dra. Indrawati, M. Hum., as his first examiner, for their continuous guidance and
valuable suggestion in finishing this final project.
The writer wish also to express his gratitude to Drs. Ahmad Sofwan, Ph.
D., as the Head of English Department, all lectures, and staffs for giving the writer
lots of valuable experiences during his study at the department.
Next, his deepest gratitude is conducted to his beloved parents, sisters, and
brothers whom always support, motivate, and love him very much. His special
gratitude is also addressed to his good mates at ex-Saddam, Mr. Dwi Mulyono,
Mr. Ostman, Mr. Klowor, Suroso (roso-roso!), and Mr. Wiwit (thanks for
supporting and entertaining me in facing the D-Day), and to everyone whom
support him but their names could be mentioned.
The last but not least, the writer realizes that this final project lacks many
things, therefore, he hopes criticisms and suggestions for his betterment. I hope
this final project will be useful for the reader.
ABSTRACT
Putra, Erik Harninta. Richard Wright’s Native Son. English Department.
Languages and Arts Faculty. Semarang State University.
This final project is a literary analysis of Richard Wright’s Native Son. The title of this study is A Communist Propaganda Towards American Black Society Through Richard Wright’s Native Son. This novel tells about an American Black named Bigger Thomas who accidentally committed two murders on Mary Dalton, a white girl and his love named Bessie Mears. The Communist, Jan Erlone and Boris A. Max then struggled to support and help Bigger in facing the problem.
I chose this topic since this novel intends to spread out the Communistic ideas towards the readers especially to the American Blacks in having their sympathy to the Communism.
This final project has three problems to be explored; those are: (1) What forms of Communism are presented in the novel? (2) What are the relationship between Communism and American Black society? (3) To whom is this novel addressed?
The writer used qualitative method as the method of investigation. The writer took the data from the text of the novel and compiled some references from several books that were related to the subject matter and searched information on the internet in supporting this study. The data were in the form of words, phrases, sentences, and quotations which were related to the topic. The analysis of this study used sociological approach.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
PAGE OF TITLE ... i
APPROVAL... ii
MOTTO AND DEDICATION ... iii
AKCNOWLEDGEMENT ... iv
ABSTRACT... v
TABLE OF CONTENTS... vi
CHAPTER I: INTRODUCTION 1.1 Background of the Study... 1
1.2 Reason for Choosing the Topic... 4
1.3 Statements of the Problem ... 4
1.4 Objectives of the Study ... 5
1.5 Significances of the Study... 5
1.6 Outline of the Thesis ... 6
CHAPTER II: REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE 2.1 Communism ... 7
2.2 The Forms of Communism ... 10
2.2.1 Human Alienation ... 10
2.2.2 Against Capitalism ... 11
2.3 Communism in United States of America ... 12
2.3.2 Black Acceptance towards Communism ... 14
2.4 Richard Wright... 16
2.4.1 The Biographical Sketch ... 17
2.4.2 Wright’s Affiliation with Communist Party ... 19
CHAPTER III: METHOD OF INVESTIGATION 3.1 Object of the Study ... 21
3.2 Types of Data ... 21
3.3 Approach of the Study ... 21
3.4 Method and Procedures of Collecting Data ... 22
3.5 Analysis of the Data ... 22
3.6 Technique of Reporting the Result ... 23
CHAPTER IV: DATA ANALYSES 4.1 The Communistic Ideas Found in the Novel... 24
4.1.1 Against Capitalism ... 24
4.1.2 Alienation... 37
4.1.2.1 Alienation from Their Product that They Produced... 38
4.1.2.2 Alienation from Their Society ... 39
4.2 The Relationship between the Forms of Communism and the American Black Society that are found in the Novel ... 41
4.2.1 Against Racial and Class Oppression towards the Blacks ... 41
4.2.2 Against Prejudice ... 45
4.2.3 Black Nation within White’s Nation... 46
4.3 To Whom the Novel is addressed ... 47
4.3.2 The Whites ... 50
CHAPTER V: CONCLUSION AND SUGGESTION 5.1 Conclusion ... 53
5.2 Suggestion ... 54
BIBILIOGRAPHY... 55
CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION
1.1 Background of the Study
Discrimination, racism, and prejudice are admittedly parts of American history.
Those have lasted for centuries and helped creating an unbalanced society.
American Black people are considered as the most suffered group due to their
long history. Rebekah and Gertudo (1966:124) inform “most Negroes were forced
by social, economic, and political injustice to live in poverty and segregation”. In
addition, their worst experience under slavery has put them away from having
justice and prosperity that have been dreamed before. This condition has finally
placed the Black people as the most oppressed class among other minorities.
Inspired by American forefather’s thoughts documented in the Declaration
of Independence, it is clearly stated that all men are created equal. Black people
desperately fight against that in equality. There are both physical and moral
actions that are run by the Blacks at gaining the equal opportunity which is said as
the fundamental value of all American life. While some illiterate blacks give a
direct physical response to protest, those who are literate often use their skill in
writing.
One among several famous black writers is Richard Wright. He makes
literature as his written protest. Rees (1973:2) states that “literature is writing
adds that “literature should be a criticism of life’’ (Rees, 1973:2). Wright’s Native
Son clearly depicts the pictures of Black’s life and their struggle against white’s mistreatments. It is about the life of Bigger Thomas who accidentally committed
two murders, a rich white girl named Mary Dalton and his black lover named
Bessie Mears. After running away for days, he was finally captured and forced to
meet the trial. Bigger was then helped and defended by a lawyer from labor
defender who much adapted communistic ideas on his plea. By adapting
Communism in his novel, Richard Wright not only portrayed his protest but also
tried to conduct his propaganda to spread out this idea, notably towards Black
people. Sastropoetro (1991:46) defines that propaganda as allegations, facts,
opinions, and the like, systematically spread with the intention of helping or
harming some individual, group, institution, or movement utilized by political
factions. As being a member of Communist Party of United States of America
(CPUSA) in 1930’s, Richard Wright had a moral obligation to spread out his
communistic ideas in order to raise people’s sympathy to join CPUSA. He used
his writing skill as his hidden weapon as a Communist propaganda through Native
Son. He also tried to show communism as the fine way out avoiding many racial issues between the Blacks and the Whites that mostly performed in his novel.
Using racial tension in his novel, Communist could be assumed as the finest way
in having people’s sympathy especially the Black people. Pipe (2002:142) notes
that communists could gain their participants by running certain policy or agenda
that much concern with proletarian issues such as the equality for Blacks.
Furthermore, Cohen (www.cpusa.org/article/static/758) also that “our party’s
the dark races, that for centuries have been oppressed by the Whites. It could be
used as the program of the Communist party in America. Having those aspects,
Native Son is then regarded as an effort in delivering communism among Blacks. They become the main target in delivering Communism since they are assumed as
the oppressed class suffering from the White’s mistreatments that have lasted for
centuries. However, as a matter of fact, it is not easy enough to increase the
membership of CPUSA among them. They often convince themselves that being
“red’’ means getting new problems from social prejudice to government
prosecution. Their darkness has already invites troubles and they do not want to
invite more.
The idea of Wright’s Native Son as a communist propaganda is an interesting topic to be discussed. Through his novel, he tried to break down that
prejudice towards communist by putting forward the parallelism between the idea
of Black’s struggle and communism against the White’s mistreatments and their
capitalist system. Of course, this is finally expected to be a kind of interesting
issues that could raise the number of CPUSA members. Despite this interesting
topic, the writer intends to analyze it in this final project. In analyzing the topic,
the writer prefers applying sociological approach to others since Native Son is
related to a wider social context and used in describing the Black society and the
communist activities. Rene Wellek and Austin Warren (1977:109) states “the
most widespread and flourishing methods of studying literature concerns with its
setting, environment, its external causes”. Damono (2002:4) also states that
literature is related to the author’s social position in his society which assumed as
1.2 Reason for Choosing the Topic
This study has been conducted on the following reasons:
a. Richard’s Native Son is interesting to be discussed due to it’s dealing with
communism, an ideology with which many countries have a phobia
including in USA where liberalism and capitalism have taken control above
all aspect on it. Through his novel, Wright assumed that Communism was
the most powerful rival of those since it had many of radical and
revolutionary ideas that wanted to put this world into classless society, an
idea that liberalism and capitalism did not have.
b. The novel is considered as communist propaganda toward minorities
especially Black people since it much adapts communistic ideas on its
entire chapters.
c. The existence of CPUSA (Communist Party of United States of America)
performed in this novel seems to be an evidence of Commintern’s
(Communist International) agenda in spreading out communism over the
world and reforming a new “red world”.
d. It gives us better information about the life of Black community that still
becomes the inferior victim of white mistreatments in USA.
1.3 Statements of the Problem
The problems the writer is trying to discuss here are as follows:
b. What are the relationship between the forms of communism and the
American Black society?
c. To whom are the novel addressed?
1.4 Objectives of the Study
The study has been conducted on these following objectives:
a. to define the forms of communism presented in the novel
b. to depict the relation between the forms of communism and the American
black society
c. to define for whom American society the novel is addressed
1.5 Significances of the Study The significant of this study are:
a. The study would be able to help the reader in understanding the novel.
b. The result of this study would be able to give information about how
Richard Wight proposes his communistic ideas and makes them relevant to
the Black struggle against their oppression under the White’s mistreatments
through Native Son.
c. The result of study could be used as the data for the next studies on the same
1.6 Outline of the Thesis
The discussion of this final project is divided into five chapters and they are as
follows :
Chapter I is the introduction. It contains the background of the study,
reason for choosing the study, statements of the problem, significance of the
study, method of investigation, and the outline of the study.
Chapter II is a review of related literature it contains communism in
United States of America and the biography of Richard Wright.
Chapter III discusses the method of investigation. It contains of the
object of the study, types of data, approach of the Study, method and procedure of
collecting data, procedure of analyzing the data, and technique of reporting the
result.
Chapter IV presents the analysis of communist propaganda toward
American black society trough Native Son.
CHAPTER II
REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE
2.1 Communism
According to many scientists and resources, Communism has different
definitions. Encyclopedia Britannic (vol 14, 1965:988) defines it as a term used to
denote system of social organization based upon common property, or an equal
distribution of wealth and income. Another more detailed definition comes from
American Encyclopedia (vol 13, 1974:789):
Communism is the term used broadly to designate a theory or system of social organization based on the holding of all property in common. Specially and currently, it refers to the doctrines underlying the revolutionary movements that aims to abolish capitalism and ultimately establish a society in which all goods will be socially owned and all economic activities socially planned and controlled, on in which distribution will be in accordance with the maxim, from each according to his capacity, to each, according to his needs.
In the early form, the term of Communism was regarded as the willingness
in having a utopian society where all private property were eliminated and
distributed to the others equally. This idea came for the first time in the ancient
Greek. Plato, in his Republic, assumed that the root of conflicts and wars was just
from the owning of private property. He then even proposed a kind of society that
justice was the extension of individual and private property in his society (Pipes,
2001:14).
The term of Communism, in its scientific sense, was officially used in
1840’s by Karl Heinrich Marx. He was a great philosopher in his time and was the
founding father of Marxism. Marx made Communism to be better known through
his works. Among them were the Economic and Philosophic Manuscripts (1844),
The German Ideology (1846), Communist Manifesto (1848), and Das Capital (1867).
The Economic and Philosophic Manuscripts contains Marx’s idea concerning moral and religious system of humanistic nation system through world
evolution (Suseno, 2001:50). In The German Ideology, Max defined the priority
of economic as the determined law on the development of history and society.
Marx’s Communist Manifesto concerns on the way he described history as a class
struggle (Pipes, 2003:17). While in Das Capital, he proposed the destruction
nature of Capitalism in which it had been predicted before.
Based on his works and ideas, Marx argued that the problem of basic
social change was determined by two keys concepts: first, the power of production
and second, the relationship of production. The clash between these was the
deepest cause of basic social change (Ebestein, 1991:8). Marx believed that the
controlling system of the means of production could produce another different
social class. He found out that the were two major classes becoming an exaction
from this situation, the bourgeoisie who controlled the means of production and
the proletariat, the lowest class that could only have their force as a product to
it as an ideal thought of the private properties elimination and the idea of society’s
egalitarianism that not only should happen, but it is also must be occurred in spite
of the scientific economical evolution. Here, Max argued that a full Communism
could be held when the matured Capitalism was on its climax stage. It finally
created a social revolution of proletariat dictatorship towards the bourgeoisie
class.
Communism in which Marx dreamed for, was merely the final form of
social revolution. As quoted by Suseno (2001:170), Marx defined Communism as
the advanced evolution to kingdom of freedom The Communist society has its
own characteristics. Marx furthermore told it as follows: 1). The elimination of
private property on the means of production, 2). The social class
elimination/classless society, 3). States elimination, 4). The elimination of work
division among people (2001:171). At the beginning, Marx used the term of
Communism and Socialism as the same meaning as the description of the society
after elimination of private property. Soon, these two words become much
different in meaning. Based on the Intenationalle II conference in 1889, the way
of implementing Marxism was divided into three poles : revolutionary, centrism,
and reformism. Those who were on the reformism assumed that Capitalistic
system could be formed through some light efforts without any social revolution.
While the revolutionary argued that Communism could be only gained only by the
way of class struggle and social revolution, even when Capitalism had not
matured yet. The centrism convinced themselves as the only Marxist who
defended the original texts of Marxism. The revolutionary Marxist made the
Under Lenin’s revolutionary point of view, Communism became a
movement. It is distinct from the conservative socialist movements. After the
success in having Russian revolution, his radical party changed its name into
Communist party and established the Union of Soviet Socialist Republic (USSR).
In this stage, Communism began to have the advanced meaning. Suseno
(2001:264) defines Communism is ’’the party or movement or Communistic
political system that based on Marxism-Leninism”. Furthermore, it is also defined
as a political ideology that seeks to establish a future classless, stateless social
organization based upon common ownership of the means of production and the
absence of private property. Communism gained its popularity when it was used
as the official ideology of the largest and most powerful countries of the world at
that time, USSR.
2.2 The Forms of Communism 2.2.1 Human Alienation
The central concept of alienation refers to a relationship between two or more
people or parts of oneself in which one is cut off from, a stranger to, or alien to,
the other (Sargent, 1995:86). In Marxism, it means something more specific.
Marx assumed that under capitalism, individuals became cut off from – out of
tune with – themselves, their families, and friends, and their work. They did not
work in independent and universal, indeed, they just worked for their own life to
be survived.
Marx proposed two main forms of human alienation. First, alienation from
production; yet, it was used by stranger as his private property. Their productivity
value would become decreased along with the increasing of products they made.
The workers then became a cheaper commodity who made the commodities went
cheaper as well. The wages of the workers were only sufficient to support their
needs in order to stay and able to work. The second form was human alienation as
an isolation between human and others. Their friends who competed with them as
a worker were assumed as strangers too. Furthermore, both of them were isolated
from “the essential of human nature’’.
2.2.2 Against Capitalism
Hornby (1982:125) defines Capitalism as “economic system in which a country’s
trade and industry are organized and controlled by the owners of capital, the chief
elements being competition, profit, supply, and demand’’. Marx attributed most of
the ill of contemporary society were caused by the capitalist system.
Marx had three economic theories that used to counter the increase of
Capitalism. There were the labor theory of value, the doctrine of subsistence
wages, and the theory of surplus value. Sargent (1998:87) informs those theories
as follows: the first theory tells that the value of any manufactured object is based
on the amount of labor time consumed in producing it. The second theory is about
the Capitalist’s profit that is taken from the reduction on the workers’ wages.
While the last theory argues that as the Capitalist would have to reduce wages to
keep up their rate of profit, they then replace workers with machines.
Hence, Marx’s major economic criticism turns on the exploitation of the
only based on the economic problem but also centered on the system in which it
keeps the proletariat from fulfilling their potentials of individuals. Other
consideration tells that the state is becoming the dominant class’ tool to suppress,,
violently if necessary, any attempt done by the proletariat in having a better
condition. It is said that the economic authority also determines its power in
politic. Suseno (2001:120) informs Marx’s theory on the establishment of state. In
his perspective, Marx put a state as classes state that directly or indirectly
controlled by the dominant class who have great power on the means of
production. In addition, as long as the bourgeoisie become the dominant class, the
government would be its tool and could not be made responsive to the needs of
the other classes.
Marx also added that the bourgeoisie would use the religion system to
maintain their existence. This then leads to what Marx meant by his famous
statement that religion as the opium of the people. He believed religion kept the
workers from the activities seeking to change the system and on its downtrodden
position (Sargent, 1998:89). Marx made many scathing attacks on religion and
argued that the future society that ruled by proletariat would have no religion.
2.3 Communism in United States of America
As one of the powerful countries, the USA plays a dominant role in determining
decision of world policy and often becomes the center for international politic. It
has a great ability in both influence and accelerate international happenings,
including spreading of an ideology. Therefore, no wonder it becomes as the main
discussing the Communist activities in USA or any other countries, the role of CP
(Communist Party) cannot be neglected since the party has become the center of
all communist activities to spread out the ideological concept to undertaking
revolutionary movements.
2.3.1 The Rise and Growth of CPUSA
The Communist Party of the United States of America (CPUSA), the one with
which Richard Wright had affiliated, is one of several Marxist-Leninist groups in
the United States. It is preceded by the emergence of other leftist groups like the
Communist Party of USA and the Communist Labor Party. Having the friction of
some factions in the socialist movement, several leftist activists such as Charles R,
Louise Fraina, and others, founded the party on September 1st, 1919. The
Bolshevik revolution of Russia in 1917, inspired them to prepare the same
revolution for American people. Therefore, they looked for support and joined the
Communist International (Comintern) and pledged their fidelity to that
organization. However, despite the existence of two Communist Parties, the
Comintern was not accepted that condition. Comintern asked them to merge under
the name of the United Communist Party in January 1920. Even though some
members disobeyed the instruction and at first continued to operate independently,
the Comintern kept on its effort to unify them. After instructing for a more
strongly directive, the Comintern eventually gained success in having the parties
merged in May 1921. The name was finally agreed as the Communist Party of
The party itself had many bad experiences from the very beginning.
Following the nation-wide “red scare” in late 1919 and early 1920, Ebon
(1964:277) informs that leaders and headquarters of radical groups all over the
country were seized under the instruction from Attorney General A. Mitchell
Palmer. It made the parties banned on January 20, 1920 and remained illegal for
nearly two years.
Gaining its legality, the party started reorganizing its internal leadership
and later found itself involved in more complicated affairs, both nationally and
internationally. Dunmore writes that during the era of Great Depression, the
influence of Communism had far deeper since it offered the way out for the
problem they faced. Many Americans became the party’s members and many
more were fellow travelers. Considering this time was the ’’red decade”, the party
began to gain its notable force in American politic. It had placed labor struggle,
egalitarianism, black liberation, anti Nazism, and some others as the agendas in
rallies that often led by the CPUSA. In addition, the party had often delivered it’s
candidates on the presidential election from 1924 to 1984.
2.3.2 Black Acceptance toward Communism
Providing some alternative solutions to end miseries caused by the injustice and
inequality, Communism often had attracted much attention from those who were
oppressed, especially the black people. The miserable condition of blacks, mostly
caused by the oppression they faced from the whites, seems to be the main reason
for blacks to enter Communism. However, it is not easy to increase the party’s
of being “red”, who are usually depicted as radical, non-cooperated, fanatic, and
still many other dark attributes. For blacks themselves, being “red” means getting
new problems from social prejudice to government prosecution. Their blackness
has already invited troubles and they do not want to invite more. Concerning the
membership of black communist, Katz (1974:399) records that no more than 200
black communist who involved into CPUSA until 1928. Most of them felt that
blacks had had enough trouble being black without being “red” as well. Having
this prominent reason, it can be said that since its establishment in 1919, the
Communist Party has found it hard to attract and raise the blacks sympathy..
Bindre (1986:15) informs that despite the numerous efforts had been done to
attract blacks during 1920’s including by taking number of black youth to
Moscow, the CPUSA still found it hard since the blacks still gave their great
attention to Republican Party. It could be traced back from the history of this
party. It was President Lincoln, a Republican, who in 1863 issued the
Emancipation Proclamation and resulted in the 13 rd Amendment of the
Constitution of the United States that officially abolished slavery in the United
States. It made most of them loyal as Republican and rejected any other party,
including CPUSA. The efforts done by communist, therefore, could not increase
the CPUSA membership until the so called the Great Depression hit America in
the early 1930’s. According to (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great Depression),
this Depression is pictured as:
declines in the production and sale of goods and a sudden, severe rise in unemployment. Businesses and banks closed their doors, people lost their jobs, homes, and savings, and many depended on charity to survive.
It is also informed that “in the US between 1929 and 1933 unemployment soared
from approximately 3 percent of the workforce to 25 percent, while
manufacturing output declined by one-third” (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great
Depression). The effect of this economic depression was so great that many
Americans, whether they are black or white, were out of works
. The Communist Party membership, including black membership,
increased greatly during this time. The Communist appeared to gain success in
organizing the unemployed black worker when the depression hit the black
community. In gaining black support, the party set up a committee against
eviction and organized rallies in which black leaders join the rallies. In this kind
of rallies, they talked about injustice and offered the communists’ solution for it..
To some black people, including Richard Wright, Communism gave a new
understanding on their position in the society and how to behave. However, it was
still regarded as something suspicious that needed to be anticipated.
2.4 Richard Wright
In sociological analysis, the life of the writer can not be neglected since the writer
also in some way a reflection of the society. Through the discussion on the
writer’s life and his surrounding, the characteristic of his society can be drawn.
Therefore, the reader can get more understanding upon his work. This subchapter
on his affiliation with Communist Party in order to give background information
related to the main topic of this final project.
2.4.1 The Biographical Sketch
Richard Wright was born on September 4 th, 1908 on a plantation in Roxie,
Mississippi. He grew up in a poor family, just like other black families in the
South. His father, Nathaniel Wright, was an illiterate sharecropper, and his mother
Ella Wilson Wright, was a schoolteacher, while his grandfather was once a slave.
When he was five years old, his father deserted the family to live with another
woman. This and other unfortunate conditions, such as his mother’s bad health,
made his childhood even more miserable. He was taken care by one relative to
another. He lived with an aunt and uncle in Arkansas for several years until his
uncle was murdered by white in 1917.
In the fall of 1918 Wright entered school, but had to leave in early 1919
because of his mother’s bad health. He was then forced to earn money to support
the family. In addition, he had to gather coal along the railroad in order to heat the
home. The family moved often because they could not rent a permanent house. As
many southern black families, Wright family was attracted to the story of
economic prosperity in the North. Therefore, they joined the northward migration
in the late 1920’s. the so called Great Migration is defined as :
Black people got a better life in the North. They wanted to put their old miserable
live in the South behind. the number who moved during the two decades were of
great scale. It was reported that:
Between 1915 and 1920, from 500.000 to 1 million African Americans left the rural South for the urban North: thousands more moved West………..in addition to the hundreds of thousands who left in the 1910’s, another 700.000 to 1 million African Americans moved North and west in the 1920’s (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great Depression).
Soon they established black community among other communities in the North
and became new competitor for job occupation. Wright, himself, went North with
his family and stayed for a while in Jackson.
In late 1927, Wright and his aunt Maggie moved to the South Side of
Chicago. This migration made Chicago’s black population increased vendor, so he
could manage his own finance at least until the Great Depression attacked United
States in 1930. Richard found his hours to be cut at post office.
Interested in writing and literary career, Wright joined the John Reed Club
in 1933, a club that intended to foster young leftist talent. Here, he had a link to
leftist writers from entire nation. He then started to submit his own works about
revolutionary poetry to Left Front. His activities in the club eventually gave him
ways to join the Communist Party and there he participated as member of editorial
board of Left Front. He remained as the member of the party for over a decade
even after the party disbanded the club and ceased the publication of the Left
Front.
Wright married twice, the first with Rose Dimah Meadman, a white ballet
daughters. His first marriage only lasted for no more than two years before getting
its failure. In the mid 40’s, Wright traveled to France intellectually such as Sartre,
Camus, anthropologist Claude Levi-Strauss. He stayed there until December.
Later he decided to become a permanent expatriate in Paris after returning for a
while to New York to call for Ellen and his daughter, Julia. He traveled to many
places, from Spain, London, Italy to Africa’s Gold Coast before finally moved
with his family to France. On November 18t, 1961, he died of a hearth attack and
was buried in Paris.
2.4.2 Wright’s Affiliation with Communist Party
Wright’s contact with communism was first established in 1933 when he
participated in the John Reed Club, a left organization for the arts, in hopes of
learning to write and publish his own works. He was then introduced into the
literary circle through this club. Although not all, several members of the club
were also members of the Communist Party. That club was aligned with the
Communist Party USA and ran their policies under the guidance of the party..
When it came for members of the Chicago John Reed Club to vote for the new
board, Wright was elected as executive secretary. Despite his capability, his
colored skin played a significant role in the election process. This could be
understood because in this kind of club, no radicals wanted to call racist.
He joined the Communist Party after getting some contacts with member
of the party. Wright found communism appealing in its support toward artistic
community wishing to create a new, progressive world. As described in one of his
Communist Party was mostly because of its views, which were paralleled with his
own ideas regarding the experience of the minority. Wright found communists,
especially the party, had problem in approaching the masses of black people since
it had limited access to those of black, for that reason, Wright positioned himself
as “bridge’’ between them. This quotation explains that:
They had a program, an ideal, but they had not yet found a language. Here, then, was something that I could do, reveal, say. The communists, I felt, had oversimplified the experience of those whom they sought to lead. In their efforts to recruit masses, they has missed in too abstract a manner. I would try to put some of that meaning back. I would tell common people of the self-sacrifice of communists who strove for unity among them (http://en.gradesaver.org/wiki/Biography of Richard Wright.html).
He then actively wrote for the JRC publication, Left Front, and for other
leftist publication such as: Anvil, New Masses, and Daily worker. Since the JRC
was part of the Communist Party culture, their publications reflected the idea of
communism by portraying the crisis of capitalism and the solution offered by
communism, so were Wright’s works. Dunmore states that Wright’s poems A Red
Love Note and Rest of his works illustrates his belief in the masses impending revolts and the collapse of capitalism (1986:27)
When communist Party left JRC in 1934, Wright felt disappointed. He
spoke in American Writer Congress and argued for the usefulness of the club. In
1935 he was hired by the Federal Writer Project, a subdivision of the Works
Progress Administration (WPA), a US government agency that created to put
unemployed people to work on public projects during the Great Depression of the
found no place for him there since he was suspected as being an intellectual who
wanted to oppose the party’s policies.
CHAPTER III
METHOD OF INVESTIGATION
3.1Object of the Study
The object of the study is a novel entitled Native Son written by Richard
Wright. Harper Parental, a division of Harper Collins Publishers published it
in 1998. It has three chapters, each of them are: Fear (95 pages), Flight (176
pages), and Fate (160 pages). It is about the life of Bigger Thomas who
accidentally committed two murders, a rich white girl named Mary Dalton and
his love named Bessie Mears that later dragged the Communist existence.
3.2Types of Data
The data of this study are in the form of words, phrases, sentences, written
dialogues, explicit and implicit meanings found in the novel.
3.3 Approach of the Study
The writer uses a sociological approach in this study. He assumes that this
approach is the appropriate one since this novel is looking for the Communist
3.4Method and Procedures of Collecting Data
The writer collects the data by applying some steps stated as followings:
1. Reading the novel as a very step in collecting data, the writer read Native
Son many times to understand and comprehend it toward the topic of this study.
2. Identifying the data by underlining, bracketing, marking, and then
numbering the data.
3. Inventorying the data by listing the data into column in several variables.
In order to make it easier, the writer use table to put the identified data in
it.
4. Classifying of the data based on the problems that will be answered, for
example, the second problem, What are the forms of Communism found in
the novel? In answering it, the data will be taken from Appendices 1.
5. Analyzing the data. It means the writer analyzes the selected data with its
reasons why the data support the determination problems. The complete
analysis will be reported in chapter IV as the result of this study.
3.5 Analysis of the Data
In analyzing the data, the writer would like to analyze the forms of
American Black society that are found in Wright’s Native Son. Finally, the
writer would draw his conclusion based on the analyzed data about the way
how Native Son could be regarded as a Communist propaganda toward American Black people.
3.6 Technique of Reporting the Result
The writer chooses the descriptive method on reporting the result of the
analysis. The method involves description, analysis, and interpreting of the
CHAPTER IV DATA ANALYSES
4.1 The Communistic Ideas Found in the Novel
As the writer mentioned before, due to his status as a Black Communist, Wright’s
Native Son is mostly considered as an effort to spread out his leftist views toward his own folks, Black people. In the novel, he tried to present these regarding the
tragedy of Bigger Thomas by relating it with the Black struggle as the oppressed
class rather than seeing it as merely a crime. In this sub chapter, the study will
analyze the Communistic ideas found in Wright’s Native Son.
4.1.1 Against Capitalism
The idea and the effort against Capitalism have become a well known
characteristic of Communism. It is based on Marx’s theory of scientific socialism
that describes about the falling process of Capitalism and the raising step for
Communism as a new society. Through his works, Marx assumed Capitalism and
its forms were regarded as the worst structure of social society that had to be
eliminated since it produced an unbalanced power position between the have
(bourgeoisie) and the have not (proletariat). This condition then led to the class
Capitalist bourgeoisie could exploit them easily in order to maintain their
existence of being a powerful minority that controlled the means of production
and other influential aspects on the society. Other radical Marxian of the day refer
those Capitalist’s forces into the form of all human ideas including the way of
people thought, law, religion, philosophy and politics. These ideas are so called
the superstructure elements of society. The Capitalist could easily control those
elements since their power in the capital and economic aspect would determine
the way in which the superstructure elements take their forms in the society.
Communists condensed that as long as the bourgeoisie was still to be the
dominant class, those elements would be its tool and could not be made
responsive to the needs of other classes (Sargent, 1998: 89).
In Native Son, the nature of using those superstructure elements on economic, law, and religion as the Capitalist’s tools in suppressing and oppressing
the minorities could be found clearly. The character of Mr. Dalton, Buckey, and
Reverend Hammondare may exemplify in how the Capitalist could determine
their dominance as the ruling class over the minorities on economic, law, and
religion. While the character of Bigger Thomas, Bessie Mears, and other Blacks
characters are described as the representative of the oppressed class that suffers on
those forms of Capitalism. Besides those characters, the existence of Communist
characters within their ideas through Max and Jan Erlone could symbolize
Wright’s intention in criticizing the negative aspects of Capitalism and trying to
drive public mind that Communism concerns a lot to those oppressed class.
In the economic sector, the Capitalist could have their dominance over the
capital and the means of production. They often use them as their primary power
to control the society though the economic sector. The capitalistic economic often
support their class to be a powerful class among the others. Their interest in
having a great number of profits as a high value to be had has made them replace
the relationship over the minorities into the form of relationship that based on
suppression and exploitation in order to achieve their primary goal having as
much profits as they could produce. In doing this, the Capitalist have eliminated
the humanity value over the minorities as their workers since they pay no attention
on the workers’ condition who have been exploited totally. Marx saw this
relationship as a social process in which the bourgeoisie could directly destroy the
traditional relationship between them and the proletariat that could take the worst
way than the feudalism (Suseno, 2002:163).
In Native Son, the Capitalist’s oppression on economic sector could be seen through the efforts done by the character of Mr. Dalton in exploiting Bigger
and his Black folks in order to gain a great number of profits. Mr. Dalton was a
White man who had a number of capital produced from his ownership on several
real estate in his town. Most of them were located in the Southern Chicago named
the Black Belt in where Bigger and his black folks lived. Although Mr. Dalton
built and rented those real estates to the Blacks, their condition was not well
representative houses to be lived in. Many Blacks had to live in a small room
shared with others, while they had to pay the rental fee to Mr. Dalton more bucks
than the Whites who rented the same houses in other area outside the Black Belt.
owned property all over the Black Belt, and he owned property where white folks lived too. (Datum No.4)
Living in this kind of shabby flats, Bigger and his black folks also often had to
suffer of much freezing when the snow fell since their rented flats had no enough
heater to warm them up. The owner seemed not to pay great attention in what they
were suffering for. In fact, he only paid his great consideration on the rental fee
that Black had to pay on every week. Whatever complains they had, they had paid
the rental fee before the owner knocked the door.
“Yeah, them old white landlords sure don’t give us much heat’’ “And they always knocking at your door for money’’.
(Datum No. 2)
The data above shows us how the Capitalist exploit the minorities though their
power over their capital and means of production in having their profits. They
seem not to pay any attention to the minorities who could become their costumer
on their means of production. In this case, the Capitalist as the seller should built a
good relationship and provide a good service toward the minorities who act as the
customer. If this relationship takes place, the minorities would have an equal
position as the Capitalist since they could have their bargaining power as the
customer who could determine the value of product sold by the Capitalist.
However, the situation that felt by Bigger and his folks could turn on a hundred
and eighty degrees from which it is supposed to be. The Capitalist, although as the
seller, still could exploit the minorities like Bigger and his black folks totally
because the monopoly and free-trade economic system ran by them could legalize
every effort they had in achieving a great number of profits as they wanted.
become a powerful class controlling and determining the value on every kind of
products that are delivered to the society including those which influence the
fundamental need for living such as food, clothes, and housing. They often make
them rare on the market while the demanding of those things is raised highly.
Therefore, the Capitalist could have a great number of profits through this system.
Although the products are often produced in a very bad quality, they are often sold
out shortly since the unbalanced supply and demand process have made it
happen.. The Capitalist could gain their profit by selling them in expensive price
and producing them in a small amount of production expenses. Marx furthermore
explained it into his theory of surplus value that could be the only Capitalist’s
resource in making their profit. He believed that the profit of the Capitalist was
taken from the amount produced over and above the wages paid to the workers
and the materials.
The relationship of the Capitalist and the proletariat is just like what Mr.
Dalton and Bigger’s family have. There are no egalitarianism and distribution of
wealth among them. In addition, the law monopoly and free-trade that become the
characteristic of Capitalism have made this economic oppression falls into its
deepest form of the unbalanced social class toward minorities including the
Blacks. Dalton used those Capitalistic laws to regulate the price of houses that
rented to the Blacks. By using it, Dalton could freely charge Thomas family and
Black folks as much expenses as he wanted since Dalton had the power, the power
of Capital. It leads to an exploitation of the poor by the rich class, Capitalist. This
“the relationship between the Thomas family and the Dalton family was that renter to the landlord, customer to merchant, employee to employer, the Thomas family got poor, and the Dalton family got rich’’. (Datum No. 27)
It clearly shows that the Capitalist’s economic system has made a thick
barricade that distinguishes them to the minorities. They are considered to be
responsible in pushing down that relationship into unbalanced society. By having
the power over the capital and means of production, they often convince
themselves as an exclusive class who has a right and authority determining the
way of how the society runs. In addition, the relationship between the Capitalist
and the minorities will always be measured from the economic sector besides the
others, especially the humanity values. Soon this could turn its form into
exploitation and suppression toward the minorities. Based on Marx’s works, the
Communist agreed that the history was determined by the materialistic
conception. Marx mentioned that the strong influence of materialistic production
could dominantly control and determine the social form and its development.
Bourgeoisie (the Capitalist) was considered as a social class that could make this
law into reality and even changed the social condition became unbalanced society
resulted by their oppression over the minorities (proletariat) since they had the
capital and the means of production. In the novel, this condition had put Bigger
and his Black folks into a powerless class. They always let the Capitalist oppress
them since they could not do anything that made them become a tough rival for
those Capitalist. They did not have any means of production to be used besides
their forces as a labor. Bigger and Bessie realized that they could only sell their
efforts seemed useless since the salary they had would come back to the Capitalist
again through the highest living expenses in the Black Belt area. The monopoly
system that is often used by the Capitalist also makes their dominance in
controlling the economic aspect over the minorities become greater and greater.
Their power in having capital and the means of production lets no any group have
other means of production in having a great number of profits over the minorities.
Therefore, there would be no single class besides the Capitalist that could compete
and become their opponent. The existence of monopoly system on some daily
commodities that existed in the Black Belt could be one example of Capitalist’s
oppressions in economic aspect. They had made black folks have to spend much
money even in buying their daily needs such as bread since there were no other
sources that could provide those daily needs besides the Capitalist.
“Bread sold here for five cent a loaf, but across the “line’’ where white folks lived, it sold for four’’. (Datum No. 14)
The other forms of Capitalist’s oppression could be also seen in how they
use the law instruments to suppress the minorities in order to maintain their
interest as the ruling class. The existence of law no longer becomes the protector
of the minority classes but it is a kind of oppressor’s tool in crushing their enemy.
In Native Son, what Bigger had experienced in facing the law could be assumed as
the Capitalist’s access in showing their dominance over the others. Bigger once
realized this nature when he wanted to arrange a plan to rob a White man. He
considered that what he would do was a highly risk crime since the police
especially the white police would search him up to every single side of the area
he did that crime toward his own people, Black folks. Bigger could do it easily
without any noticed from the police. Their law system would close its eyes in
every time Black did crime towards their own folks. Indeed, if they were noticed,
the police would never figure it out seriously. Therefore, Bigger’s fear to face
White’s law is considered as a powerless class’ thought since he together with
other Blacks had nothing against Capitalist’s tool named the law. Bigger just
would rather put himself into a safety position by only hanging around with other
Black folks than made a contact with White people. In his thought he assumed:
“And too, they had never held up a white man before. They had always robbed Negroes. They felt that it was much easier and safer to rob their own people, for they knew that white policemen never really searched diligently for Negroes who committed crimes against other Negroes’’. (Datum No. 1)
Another impact of having law as the Capitalist’s tool could be seen on the process
capturing Bigger Thomas. Although in the previous, Bigger put his fear dealing a
crime towards the White, he finally did it over the White’s life even the worst
over Mary Dalton’s life, a daughter of the most famous Capitalist in the Chicago,
Mr. Dalton. It is said that Bigger Thomas who was also a driver working at Dalton
family, accidentally killed Mary just after couple days being a driver there. In
addition, he also killed his love, Bessie Mears during his escaping from the
policemen chasing. Almost five thousand policemen supported by more than three
thousand volunteers were speared out all over the Black Belt during the searching.
They blocked every access that went outside the area. By having heavy and
complete combat equipments, they began to chase Bigger in every side of Black
named Bigger Thomas. In this condition, the Capitalist showed how they used the
power of law as their tool oppressing the minority trough the force of policemen.
Wright described it into this following datum:
“immediately a cordon of five thousand police, augmented by more than three thousand volunteers, was thrown about the Black Belt. Chief of Police Celenman said this morning that he believed that the Negro was till in the city, since all roads leading in and out of Chicago were blocked by a record-breaking snowfall and several hundred Negroes resembling Bigger Thomas were rounded up from South Side’’hot spot’’, they are being held for investigation’’. (Datum No. 11)
The existence of policemen as the Capitalist’s tool is actually only one
example of several law instruments that could be used easily by the Capitalist in
controlling and maintaining their interest against the minorities. In doing so, the
Capitalist as the dominant class often have the access to use all available
apparatuses including in having state as their power. There are two kinds of
apparatuses of the state: repressive and ideological apparatuses. The first includes
the court, police and army used to maintain the system using force and repression.
The second can be the school, church, media, and so on through which the
dominant ideology is reproduced so that it seems as a consensus (Harvey and
MacDonald, 1993:134)
Having Bigger Thomas captured from an empty flank, he was then forced
to meet the trial for responsible what he had done toward Mary Dalton and Bessie
Mears. Trough the character of Buckey, the way in how the Capitalist have made
the law as their tool in suppressing the minorities is could be seen in Buckey’s
intention in forcing Bigger into a death sentence. During the trial, Buckey tried to
making him have a sit on the deadly electric chair. By performing many evidences
against Bigger, Buckey implied his intention driving the court to the fact that
Bigger was a rapist and murderer. He also strongly refused the idea of Bigger’s
Communist defender, Max. In this part, Wright for the first time introduced the
character of Max. Max is described as a Communist lawyer from the ILD,
International Labor Defense who had a long struggle defending Bigger Thomas
without any reward. Martin defined ILD as a radical legal system action group
founded in 1925 that specialized in representing jailed union members,
immigrants, political activists, and member of minority groups (1992:368). The
members of the Communist Party dominated the ILD because the idea of its
establishment first came from Jones P. Cannon, an influential leader in CPUSA.
When Max offered help, Bigger kept on saying, “I ain’t got no money’’, (Datum
No. 13), but Max, precisely understood how the condition was, did not think
about the money and let his job unpaid. He calmly said, “I know that…..or forget
about that…..” (Datum No.14). As max delivered the plea of guilty over Bigger,
Buckey argued that what Max did was just an effort to release Bigger from the
death penalty since there would be three options of punishment if the plea of
guilty was administrated. The two kinds of punishment might allow Bigger
avoiding the deathly electric chair. While the third form was the death penalty
itself. The judge furthermore explained the consequences of delivering the plea of
guilty.
again,’’ or the Court may sentence you to the penitentiary for a term of not less than fourteen years’’. (Datum No. 21)
As a Capitalist’s tool performing their power, Buckey automatically delivered his
plea against the two optional that did not sentence death penalty over Bigger and
attacked Max’s statements. He did not agree and kept on refusing Max’s plea of
guilty as another way avoiding death sentence. As he had a power in the capacity
of State Attorney, he collected many evidences that proved Bigger was really
killer and rapist. By having these, he tried to drive and strengthen the mood of the
Court in giving the punishment on what he believed to be a death sentence only.
The Attorney argued that Max’s plea was a lack procedure of law. It was as insult
to the Court and the existence of law.
“A man commits two of the most horrible murderers in the history of American civilization, he confesses, and his council would have us believe that because he pleads guilty after dodging the law, after attempting to murder the policemen of law, that his plea should be looked, upon as evidence mitigating his punishment’’. (Datum No. 22)
There is another datum that could describe Buckey’s intention refusing Max’s
plea of guilty over Bigger’s crime.
“I say, Your Honor, this is an insult to the Court and to the intelligent people of this state! If such crimes admit of such defense, if this friend’s life is spared because of such defense, I shall resign my office and tell those people out their in the street that I can no longer protect their lives and property! (Datum No. 23)
The datum above also tells that Buckey could be described as a Capitalist’s agent
in maintaining and protecting their means of production. Buckey used his
authority as a State Attorney to keep Bigger and his Black folks down into the
Capitalists began when Buckey tried to run the candidate of State Attorney for the
twice. As he wanted to win the election, Buckey asked some White Capitalists to
support him in gaining his success. For the consequences, Buckey made himself
as their bumper against every efforts done by the minority against their position as
the ruling class. Through Max, Wright depicted that relationship.
“The State’s Attorney knows, for he promised the Loop bankers that if he were re-elected demonstrations for relief would be stopped!tha Governor of the state knows, for he has pledged the Manufacture’s Association that he would use troops against who went out on strike!.(Datum No. 26)
Therefore, what Buckey had done over Bigger by proposing a plea to punish him
a death sentence symbolizing the Capitalist’s oppression toward the minorities
through the power of person who is a State’s Attorney. Buckey even made the
Capitalist become stronger in their dominance since every effort against them
would be stopped by the law’s instrument including the police, army, and even a
state itself.
The Communistic idea that sees religion as just the Capitalist’s access in
suppressing the minorities could be clearly found in Native Son. To some
minorities as pictured in the character of Reverend Hammondare, religion is
pictured as a way to escape the bitter realities and substitute them with peace and
harmony so that the minorities would always let themselves under oppression..
Therefore, some Communists believed that religion could bring the proletariat
having no effort to raise movement against the capitalist instead to make
themselves become a weaker class to be always oppressed by the Capitalist. This
place of religion in human life. As quoted by Sargent (1998:89), Marx assumed
that religion was the opium of the people. He saw that religion used by the
dominant class, the bourgeoisie, to hold the proletariat in its downtrodden
position. Marx had made many scathing attacks on religion and argued that the
future society in which the proletariat would rule would have no need for religion.
Also, of course, Marx’s materialistic position was diametrically opposed to any
idea of religion. He wrote that human created religion, and the religion did not
create human. Religion in the Communist’s mind is a realization of human basic
values that could be reached just in their dream. This, yet, made human not
success enough to make them took their form in real life. Redmond Hammond’s
efforts to gain Bigger’s attention having religion as his way out overcoming the
problem could be seen as the example in how Capitalist make the minorities loose
their spirit against Capitalist’s oppression under the religion system. When Bigger
was in the jail, the preacher continuously visited Bigger in order to support and
persuade him having his own religion as a true way out. The preacher often
considered Bigger to always accept totally and not against those oppression that
had put Bigger in jail. This could be seen from the following datum:
“fergit ever’ thing but yo’ soul, son. Take yo’ mind off ever’ thing but eternal life. Fergit whut the newspapers say. Fergit yuh’s black. Gawd looks past yo’skin ‘n inter yo’ soul. He’s looking at the only parta yuh tha’s his….Lissen, lemmme tell yuh why yuh’here, lemme tell yuh a story tha’ll make yo’ heart glad……” (Datum No. 12)
Through the datum above, it tells how the preacher persuaded Bigger not to bring
some efforts against for what the White Capitalist had oppressed him by putting
believed in as the best way facing the condition that oppressed Bigger. Bigger was
demanded to always accept, realize, and have no revenge about it. But, through
the character of Bigger, the Communistic idea against religion could be seen
clearly. Wright even proposed the idea by depicting Bigger’s disbelief in the
religion since Bigger did not see a real way out which could change his poor
condition. Bigger once stated, “The white folks like us to be religious, then they
can do what they want to with us’’ (Datum No. 20). In his mind, religion was
simply a strategy of White Capitalist to control the life of his people. He saw that
it was the dominant class which was benefited by the existence of the religion.
They could do whatever they wanted to do. Bigger furthermore told his doubtful
toward his religion.
“I did not like it. There was nothing in it. Aw, all they did was sing and shout and pray all the time. And it did not get them nothing. All the colored people do that, but it does not get’em nothing. The white folks got everything.” (Datum No. 19)
Those data could be seen as the representative of Communistic idea against the
religion. Bigger’s denial in accepting religion has strengthened the nature of
Communism in Native Son that reflects a religion is just another way the
Capitalist could keep the minorities silent on any oppression.
4.1.2 Alienation
The minority classes who are still bound by their domesticity would experience
some forms of alienation. They are alienated from their own products that they
classes that are often alienated by the existence of the majority classes through
many forms. These would affect their social lives as a human being. The issue
above has made them alienated from their social as a human being. They would
loose the activities based on their own interests. As quoted by Suseno (2001:
96-97), Marx proposed two major forms of alienation. There were the alienation from
the product of their production and their society
4.1.2.1 Alienation from Their Product that They Produced
The first alienation asserted by Marx was the alienation from the worker’s product
of their production since the workers did not own the product they had produced
before. Under the Capitalist system, the workers, who were supposed to have their
work as a pleasure activity actualizing their potential, had to work in unhealthy
working condition. They could not work freely as they dreamed for. The owner of
the means of production, the Capitalist had forced them to work hard in order to
make up a great number of products. As a matter of fact, based on Mars’s thought,
the workers just worked to fulfill their primary condition in continuing life.
In Native Son, Bessie Mears is the example of this form of alienations. She was a Negro servant at white folk’s family. Although she did not produce a
concrete product, she employed her own force to provide service as a servant. She
realized that she just could provide it since she had no other means of production
used to support her daily life. Living in the Black Belt made Bessie have to earn
much money in order to gain enough prosperity than other black folks had. But,
her occupation did not give that better condition. Her wage of being a servant was
